Siberian Regional Carrier Angara Airlines focuses on the planned Uzuga TVRS-44 turboprop for the Fleetrenewal program.
However, according to director Ivan Katitsyn, the Irkutsk-based airline is also ready to see the modernized Irisin IL-114-300 as a candidate.
Angara Airlines has a fleet of 29 aircraft consisting of 11 Antonov AN-24s, three AN-26s and 15 mil MI-8 helicopters.
“We are primarily looking at the high-wing TVRS-44 Radoga, considering the infrastructure conditions at many airfields outside the airline's flight route map (and the major cities of Russia),” says Katisitin.
He spoke during a meeting with Dmitry Yadrov, chief of Federal Aviation Regulatory Authority Rosaviatia.
“We are also ready for dialogue on the IL-114-300,” says Katitsyn. The IL-114-300 is undergoing certified flight testing, but both aircraft types remain in development.
Katitsyn adds that Angara is “relying on new helicopters.”
Yadrov emphasizes that air connections in Siberia and eastern Russia depend on regional airlines.
“We are very interested in the long-term development of such airlines,” he says, noting that citizens across the Ural Mountains often do not have a “alternative” to air transport due to rapid mobility.
Yadrov and Katitsyn also discussed issues such as simplifying maintenance regulations and flight safety. It was particularly followed by the May 26 incident at Kirensk, which included the collapse of the Nose Gear of the Angara AN-26.
